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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. face — part of the head
  4. face — to confront
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. firm — a company
  7. firm — steady
  8. rush — hurry
  9. race — a contest
  10. clip — a video
  11. prune — to trim
  12. face — to point toward
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. clip — for paper
  16. rule — government
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — the arms race
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rule — a law
  22. firm — decided
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. clip — to cut

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com